Marking his first officially recorded appearance for Team India since his horrific car accident in December 2022,
Rishabh Pant
returned to national colours with an emphatic show with the bat in his team's comfortable win over Ireland to open the
T20 World Cup
campaign.
Batting at No. 3 after India decided to send Virat Kohli in as captain Rohit Sharma's new opening partner, Pant smashed unbeaten 36 off 26 balls on a difficult track at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York.
T20 WORLD CUP: Schedule | Points Table
After Hardik Pandya (3/27) led India's bowling charts to dismiss Ireland for only 96 in 16 overs, India rode on Rohit Sharma's half-century (52 off 37 balls) to achieve the target in 12.2 overs for an eight-wicket win.
Jasprit Bumrah was declared the 'Player of the Match' for his spell of 2 for 6. Arshdeep Singh took 2 for 35, while Mohammed Siraj and Axar Patel claimed one wicket each.
Rohit had to retire hurt after a Joshua Little delivery struck his arm. Pant then took over from his skipper to take the team home. Kohli could score only 1 while Suryakumar Yadav was dismissed for 2.
After India's win, Pant thanked the almighty for his return to international cricket.
"Thanku God for giving me Faith and Belief," India's wicketkeeper-batsman Pant posted on social media with a few images from India's victory over the Irish team.
Pant marked his return to India jersey with the warm-up game against Bangladesh, but India's T20 World Cup opener against Ireland on Wednesday was his first international match after a long rehabiliation phase post surgery for his injuries in the car accident.
Pant, however, made a return to competitive cricket with the 2024 Indian Premier League season, where he led Delhi Capitals.
India will next take on arch-rivals Pakistan in their second Group A game of the T20 World Cup on June 9 at the same venue in New York.
Besides Ireland and Pakistan, co-hosts USA and Canada are the other two teams in India's group.
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